| Georgia | 9,172 |
| South Carolina | 18,514 |
| Total | 27,686 |
The South Carolina troops were disposed as follows:—
| Charleston defenses, Brigadier-General Ripley | 9750 |
| James Island to the Ashepoo, Brigadier-General Evans | 4883 |
| Ashepoo to Savannah, Colonel Colquitt | 3881 |
General Stevens’s movement on the railroad, if successful, would effectually break up Colquitt’s command, and prevent succor reaching the threatened point at Charleston from the troops at and about Savannah for at least a week, most probably two weeks; for they would have to be sent around by way of Augusta, Ga., and by this route the rail was not continuous, there being a gap of over forty miles.
Consequently Pemberton’s available force to resist the proposed movement would be reduced to Ripley’s and Evans’s commands, which mustered,—
| Infantry | 10,477 |
| Artillery | 3,032 |
| Cavalry | 1,133 |
| Total | 14,642 |
Counting out the garrisons of the forts and batteries about the city and harbor, and on James, Cole, and Battery islands, it is clear that Pemberton could not possibly have concentrated over six or seven thousand troops to meet Sherman’s advance on the Stono. In all probability he would not have had half that number at the critical point in time; for the vigor of the attack on the railroad, sweeping southward, would surely have impressed him that Savannah was in danger, causing him perhaps to hurry part of his troops to the relief of that city via Augusta, while Dupont’s demonstration on Bull Bay would have still further distracted his attention from the real point of attack until too late.
Returns of the Union forces for April 30 show present for duty some 17,000, as follows:—
| Brigadier-General Viele, Daufuskie, Bird and Jones islands | 3077 |
| Brigadier-General Stevens, Beaufort | 3881 |
| Brigadier-General Wright, Edisto and Otter islands | 3623 |
| Brigadier-General Q.A. Gilmore, Fort Pulaski, Tybee, and Cockspur | 2139 |
| Colonel Robert Williams, Hilton Head | 2987 |
| Fernandina and St. Augustine, Florida | 1194 |
| Fort Seward, South Carolina, 92, and department commander and staff, 16 | 108 |
| Total | 16,988 |